


wish upon a star

by wilyasha



Category: Assassin's Creed - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Character Study, F/M, Fatherhood, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-07
Updated: 2019-01-07
Packaged: 2019-10-06 05:58:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17339846
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wilyasha/pseuds/wilyasha
Summary: “Bayek, what was your son like?” There is no taunt in his words. No ridicule on his failure as a father. Nothing. Just a cautious question uttered by a curious acolyte.





	wish upon a star

**Author's Note:**

> A Bayek character study based upon his time in _The Hidden Ones_ DLC.

Tahira’s message gets to Bayek on a warm day in Alexandria. It’s slightly humid, a wet heated breeze rolling in from the Great Green Sea. Her letter is urgent, nearly demanding him to make an appearance in Sinai. A boat awaits him in Memphis. 

Bayek leaves immediately, his ears ringing. Something has happened in Sinai, something beyond his control and he knows he must do something. He doesn’t like the position of leadership, the title of _Master_. He believes all Hidden Ones are equal. They all serve the same purpose, working in the dark to achieve freedom. Cutting strings from the fingers of tyrannical puppeteers. 

He passes Apollodorus’ home on his way. Although his once-upon-a-time friend is dead, his place still buzzes with activity. Servants now serve one of his distant relatives from Sicily who oversees the land and only visited once in the last four years. 

The nostalgic part of Bayek misses Apollodorus. They had not always agreed on politics and the art of politicking, but he was a good friend with a wholesome heart. And with his dying breath, he had warned Bayek. 

Now, Bayek passes Apollodorus’ home as if he never knew the man. A foreigner from the Roman Republic, long dead and cold. He hopes to see Apollodorus in the Field of Reeds one day. 

Things are worse than he could have imagined in Sinai. Torture. Mutilation by those who think they are Set reincarnated. _Child slavery._ His mind goes to Khemu, somewhere in the afterlife leading him to save these children. But the rebels are desperate. They need an idol and they have one. It’s something he doesn’t agree with, but the moment he first saw Gamilat at the Hidden Ones’ hideout, he knew something was not all there. A film of charisma had been coated across Gamilat’s body. He was the rebels’ messiah, their leader in this small skirmish for freedom. 

Tahira dies, burned and bruised. Body crackled like old leather. She does not look like the once vibrant woman destined to lead those to safety and freedom. Instead she looks tired and broken, but that flicker of a flame still lives on in her. Desperate to have a bow in her hands. 

Amunet promises for the two of them to see each other in Rome one day. They talk of wine and it feels normal, like years ago. Two breathless youths eagerly pressed together. They part ways once more. An unending cycle that will continue until they die. He can only hope that their bodies are placed together in their childhood cave, hidden from future generations of rebels and Hidden Ones alike. 

Give them the peace they deserve. 

\--

They sit, side-by-side, in the sand. He had been hunted by Shadows. There had been an attempted assassination on his life by a boy-now-a-man. Kawab and he are more alike than they seem. They are different sides of the same coin. A man without a son. A boy without a father. It feels unreal and he is critical of his own thoughts. Where would Khemu be if he were still alive? If Bayek had died instead, would Khemu be the one hunting for vengeance? He would not want that for his son, made from the same flesh and blood. For this son, he will treat him differently. Teach him to fight properly rather than shrinking away from duty. 

They take a day trip to Turquoise Island. It’s on that island that Kawab asks this most dreaded question.

“Bayek, what was your son like?” There is no taunt in his words. No ridicule on his failure as a father. Nothing. Just a cautious question uttered by a curious acolyte.

Bayek shrugs. “He was a quiet boy. Curious like you. Indecisive like you. I thought he would be ready, that he would ripen too soon. But he was boyish and tender. A scholar is what he would be today. Studying in Alexandria. I can only hope.”

\--

Bayek leaves the Sinai operations in Shaqilat’s hands after handling a few things on his own. He helps the children get settled, eradicates a few Roman soldiers, trains Kawab. But the most difficult thing is explaining what happened to the rebels’ leader and hoping that some will see the greater good in joining the Hidden Ones. 

He returns to Memphis with a son. 

The city stinks of sewage, but he can deal with that later. He needs a beer, some sleep, and to tell the others that Tahira has perished. 

\--

Senu watches from above, overseeing their travels. They find their way to Alexandria; it is still the bustling metropolis as it was before he left. Yet there is more talk about Octavian and Marc Antony and Cleopatra and it makes his head ache with the need to kill. It’s a dull, primal throb in the back of his skull, but it’s there. It reminds him of the awkwardness he felt just before pressing his forehead against Amunet’s. But the moment he felt her so close, he knew he was home. 

The city of Alexandria feels the same way, but he’s tired of such isolation even with Kawab by his side. He thinks he always finds his way back to Alexandria because he’s expecting for Aya to return to her house. To see her at the library surrounded by her cousin and the actors. Aya the scholar. Amunet the warrior. He’ll take either.


End file.
